Returning and Realizing
by AusllyFan
Summary: *SEQUEL TO HUGS AND HEARTBREAKS* I suggest you read that one first. It is possible that this could be read alone, but it would probably be confusing. Summary/Intro inside. Give it a try!
1. Chapter 1

**So this is a sequel to Hugs and Heartbreaks! I don't really know why I did this, someone just suggested it, so why not? But I don't don't think it's TOO bad, so just be honest and tell me what you think!**

_*Ally ended up going to New York for two and a half weeks. She went to go explain in person why she denied the entry to the school. She stayed for a few weeks just as a little vacation, and to at least look around her dream school. It was time for her to return to Miami. She was really looking forward to it.*_

ALLY'S POV

I was so psyched to finally return to Miami! I couldn't wait to see my dad and my friends and return to the best job ever at SonicBoom! Also, I was especially excited to see Austin. I haven't seen him for a week since our little 'thing' at our block party. I don't think we are dating yet, we never made it official, but he said he loved me and we kissed, but I don't know what we are.

This is going to be so awkward now that I think about it. Darn it! This is exactly why we didn't want to bring this up! Our friendship will be ruined! I don't know, he is so calm and smooth, maybe he'll handle this better than me and everything will be okay. I just want to be best friends again like normal. Well, no I don't. It felt so good when he hugged me like that. That kind of hug doesn't happen with best friends. And the kiss and the dancing! It was all so perfect! I don't want to give that up.

I got on the plane to go to Miami. I tried to just sleep off my worries, but it was no use. To many thoughts were in my mind. Finally, we arrived at the Miami airport. I still had like 20 minutes to think through everything before I got to SonicBoom in the cab. I suddenly was very nervous. But why? Who knows.

When I got to the store, there were ribbons and balloons everywhere. Oh goodness, I thought to myself. Trish and Dez and my dad were in the store and yelled,  
"WELCOME BACK ALLY!"  
And they all ran up to give me a hug.  
"Aww, thanks you guys! It was only a couple weeks though, isn't this a little much?" I said.  
"Well, we missed you." said Trish. "Plus, I also got a job at the party store, so I got a lot of discounts." she added.  
"Thanks again" I said.

But suddenly I wasn't that happy anymore. Where was Austin? Did he not want me to come back? Does he hate me? Is our friendship ruined? A million questions at once were asked in my mind.  
"Um,...where's Austin?" I said, trying not to sound desperate. Because nobody else knows about what went down between me and Austin. And for the time being, I'd like to keep it that way.  
"Oh, he said he went to go get something for you, he's going to be really upset that he missed your entrance." Said Trish.  
I felt a little bit better knowing he didn't hate me.

"Well, I have a job I have to get to. I got fired from the party store this morning for overusing my discounts, and then I got a new job at that Glow in the Dark store. I'm actually trying to keep this one because its easy to hide in there and not work, so I guess I gotta go. Sorry I couldn't stick around longer to be with ya, but we have all day tomorrow." said Trish.  
"I've gotta go talk to Jimmy Starr about filming stuff. Sorry Ally, bye!" Said Dez.  
"I hate to leave you alone, but I have to go to the town hall about upgrading the store. See ya later pumpkin!" Said my dad.

I was little let down that everyone left me so quickly. But Austin will be here soon I told myself. Hopefully it won't be awkward with just the two of us here. I went up to the practice room to wait for Austin. I played around the piano for a little while and wrote in my songbook. A little while later I heard a voice call my name.  
"Ally? Are you here?" Said Austin's voice. I was so excited to hear his voice I practically sprang out of the seat and ran downstairs.

AUSTIN'S POV

Today was the day that Ally returns from New York! I was so excited to finally see her again. I haven't really talked to her since our block party. That kind of leaves things hanging on an awkward note. Will she think we are dating? That's what I want her to think isn't it? Oh I don't know...this is all so confusing. What if she doesn't want to see me anymore? Have I ruined our friendship?

I was at SonicBoom with Trish, Dez, and Ally's dad waiting for her to arrive. Ally was about to walk in those front doors and I wanted the first one to wrap her up in a big hug. Wait a minute! I should have gotten her something! I immediately ran out of the store to go get her a gift before she returned. I got her a necklace with a diamond on it that had two A's engraved into the faces of the diamond. On the back it said, I could never make it without you. I also got her a bouquet of her favorite flowers. I hoped it wasn't too much, but I needed it to mean something. Anyway, we always go over-excessive when it comes to gifts so I think I'll be okay.

I walk into the store to find it empty. I was too late! She got here and everybody welcomed her except me! What will she think? I called out her name. The door to the practice room flew open and Ally was in the doorway glowing with excitement. She ran down the stairs to me and I had to prepare myself for what was coming.

**There's chapter one for the sequel! What did you think? I've never written a sequel to anything before, so all this is a first for me! Review! :D**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's chapter 2! Don't forget to read and review!**

*Ally's POV*

I was running down the stairs to see Austin. I didn't know what I should do. Hug him? Say hi? But I saw that same little sparkle in his eye that I saw at the party and I decided to go with the hug. But that wasn't up to me to decide. I would've gotten the hug either way because Austin scooped me up just before I got to him and spun me around in a very big hug. I wasn't even touching the ground. He finally put me down and said,  
"I missed you so much Ally. I really really did."  
"I missed you too. I wish you could've gone with me, New York was amazing. I went right through Times Square. I pictured you singing there on New Year's Eve. I think that's the perfect stage." I said.  
"Whoa, cool! Did you get pictures?" he said fascinated.  
"Of course I did! Do you really think I would go to New York and not take pictures?" I said obviously.  
"Oh, I got something for you too." He said pulling something out of his pocket.  
"So I've heard" I said.

He laughed shortly and handed me the small little box.  
"Open it. It's all yours." He said.  
I opened it up to find the most beautiful piece of jewelry I've ever seen.  
"Oh Austin! It's beautiful!" I gasped.  
"You really think so? I also got you these." He said handing me flowers.  
"Oh Austin. You're the best friend anybody could ever have." I said. "I bet all your girlfriends were so lucky." I joked.  
"Well, actually, you're the only person I've ever given gifts to." He admitted.

I suddenly was blushing again. I saw Austin smirking at me. Yet he was actually blushing too. Here was that awkward moment I didn't want to face. Although I really wanted him to kiss me. I had been longing for that feeling again ever since I left. I halfway got what I wanted. He pulled me into a little hug and kissed me on the cheek. Not all the way what I was hoping for but I guess it'll do.  
"I've got another surprise for you too" he whispered.  
"What is it?" I said.  
"Like I said, it's a surprise. Just meet me on the top of Marino Park hill tomorrow after lunchtime." He said.  
What was he planning? Was this a date? What was going on?! After that he smiled and left.

I was so excited I could hardly contain myself. I went up to the practice room and screamed with excitement. I danced around like a total idiot but I didn't care because nobody could see me. I spent the rest of the day working the store. After i closed up, I tried really hard to go to sleep because it was really late. I managed to come up with a few hours of sleep before whatever was waiting for me tomorrow.

When I woke up, I immediately got excited all over again. I tried to look as cute as possible when I was picking something to wear. I decided not to overdo it and just go casual. I put on my beachy shorts and a tank top with a loosely fitting colored shirt over top. And my flip flops. I waited forever until it was time to meet Austin. I walked to the park and sure enough, Austin was sitting at the top of the hill where I was supposed to meet him.

*Austin's POV*

Ally was just about to jump on top of me to hug me but I wanted to be one step ahead of her. I stepped in and picked her up off her feet spun her around and hugged her really tight. I put her down and told her how much I missed her. She replied with the same thing. She told me how great New York was. And how she wished I was there with her. I decided now was a good time for her gift. I handed it to her for her to open. She opened it and expressed how much she loved it. She joked about my girlfriends being so lucky to have me as a boyfriend. But I had to admit to her that she was the only one I've ever given any gifts to. I don't know why, but nobody else has been special enough to me to deserve a gift. Nobody except Ally.

I decided I wanted to take her out tomorrow so we can have a day to ourselves to catch up on lost time. We were just looking at each other, she was blushing and I know I was too. I wanted to scoop her up and kiss her again. But I figured that it was too soon for that considering neither one of us knows our current status on our relationship. So I used my willpower again and just barely hugged her and have her a tiny harmless kiss on the cheek. I told her where to meet me for tomorrow and left. I wanted to kinda leave her hanging like that so that way it'll be more special when I see her tomorrow.

I didn't know how she felt until just after I got on the sidewalk outside the store and I heard Ally screaming and laughing and dancing around. She forgot to close the window to the practice room. But I couldn't keep myself from laughing. I laughed and walked on and just decided not to bring it up. I went home made sure everything was planned to perfection. I still wanted it to be spontaneous though, but I figured I should just have my basic events planned and hope for the best with the rest.

The next morning I was getting ready for my 'date' I guess you could call it, with Ally. I knew that it was a date, but I just wanted Ally to think of it as my welcome back party for her. That way she can make what she wants of it. I didn't want to overdress for the occasion since I knew what I was planning. So I just put on a simple white t-shirt with khaki shorts and my red hi-top shoes. I gathered a bunch of Ally's favorite foods and snacks in a picnic basket and a little stereo for music. I also got a blanket and a beach ball. I just wanted to have an endless day of fun. I went and sat on the top of the hill and waited for Ally. I saw her at the bottom of the hill about to come up. I suddenly was more nervous than any other date I've ever been on. My heart skipped a beat. I tried to keep myself calm as she started walking up the hill.

**Review please! P.S. it's about to get really sweet and sappy in the next chapter!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3! Read and review!**

*Ally's POV*

I finally got to the top of the hill and met up with Austin. I was excited and nervous for whatever he had planned for me.  
"Hey, how are you?" He asked  
"Really good. Never better." I said smiling and a little to excitedly.  
"Well, I have a days worth of stuff to do so let's start with number one." He said holding up the picnic basket.  
"Are we having a picnic?" I said hopefully. Picnics are so romantic.  
"Yep! We are going to go to that really pretty part of the park that nobody ever feels like walking to." said Austin.  
"Oh cool! I have only been up there once when I was little. I ran away chasing my goose up there." I said.  
"Oh yeah, I remember you telling me about that. Funny stuff Ally." He said laughing.  
"You actually remember that? I told you that story like four years ago." I said.  
"Of course I do. I'm not like Trish. I actually listen to you when you're talking." He said.  
"That's nice to know. Well what are we waiting for? Lets go!" I said excited.

We walked through the garden of flowers to get to the little pond that we were going to sit next to. The whole thing seemed like something out of a cheesy romance movie. But it was still special to me. We finally arrived and Austin spread out the blanket. I noticed something about the blanket that I was too shy to bring up. It was the same blanket we used on our practice date in the store. That little thing made me blush for no reason. Austin saw my expression as I was looking at the blanket and I think he knew what I was thinking but he never said anything about it either.

He opened up the picnic basket and told me to take whatever I want. It was filled with all my favorite things! Especially PICKLES! He even got lobster from New York that I told him I loved. Lobster! On a picnic! It was great.  
"How did you know to get all my favorite things?" I asked.  
"Ally, how long have I known you?" He asked rhetorically.  
I continued eating and talking to Austin about his dreams of playing Times Square on New Year's Eve. Finally, we were so full, we couldn't eat anything else.  
"Alright, now it's time for some fun." Said Austin.  
I got kinda nervous because his idea of fun and my idea of fun are two totally different ideas.

He grabbed my hand and pulled me towards a little path through the trees. At the end of the path, we were walking on sand instead of grass. We were on a little private section of the beach that the rest of Miami doesn't know about. He pulled a deflated beach ball out of his pocket and blew it up.  
"You any good at volleyball?"he asked me.  
"Um, not really, I mean I guess I'm okay but..." I said. He had already tossed the ball at me. I hit it back a lot better than I was expecting. He had drawn a line in the sand marking the net. We were playing a really good game of volleyball. Turns out, I'm a lot better than I thought. I hit it harder than I thought and the ball nailed Austin in the stomach. He fell over acting overly dramatic, complaining at how much it hurt. But it wasn't very convincing when he kept laughing between his sentences. I was laughing my head off too. He grabbed my arm and pulled me down in the sand with him. We were both just laying there laughing in the sand. After all that laughing, we finally stopped and he just rolled over on his side and looked at me, smiling. I looked back at him.  
"You're pretty good at volleyball" he said.  
"Yeah, I guess I am. I had no idea." I laughed. We had another moment just laying in the sand beside each other.

Before anything awkward could happen, Austin jumped up so fast it startled me. I sat up to see what he was doing. To my surprise, he was taking off his shirt. I've seen Austin shirtless before, but this time it made my heartbeat speed up.  
"Well I'm burning up. You wore me out in volleyball." He said smiling.  
He tossed his shirt back at me and ran right into the waves of the ocean and jumped in. I noticed that his shirt smelled really good. So good in fact, that I held it up to my face and took a big breath in. It smelled like Austin. It was a good comforting smell that I would recognize anywhere. Every time I've been close to him thats what I smell.

I wanted to be with him but I am afraid of the waves. I kicked of my flip flops and took off my top shirt so it was just my tank top and shorts. I walked to the edge of the water looking for Austin. Only then did I notice that it was already sunset. I had gotten my feet wet but I didn't want to go any further. I finally saw Austin's head pop up over the waves.  
"What are you waiting for? The water is nice and warm!" He said reassuringly. Even though he was wrong, the water wasn't warm, it was actually a little chilly. It wasn't cold at all but it wasn't warm. He finally had enough of my waiting and walked up the shore to me. Good, I thought, now I don't have to get wet.  
But I was wrong. He scooped me up like a little baby and carried me out into the water. He did it so fast I had to hold on to him extra tight. He was taking me right through the waves! I was too scared for this!  
"Austin! I'm scared of the waves!" I practically yelled in his ear.

He stopped moving once we got past the breaking point in the waves. He just looked at me and said,  
"It's okay Ally, I've got you."  
I smiled and looked away from his eyes because I was suddenly embarrassed. Because of the sunset, he couldn't see me blushing. I was happy for that. I was still holding him tighter than I needed to and I remembered he wasn't wearing a shirt which suddenly made me even more embarrassed.  
"You can let go now Ally. I'm going to set you down in the water." He explained.  
"No! I'm not a good swimmer!" I yelled, tightening my grip on him once more.  
"Ally, it's okay! The water is only like four feet deep right here." He said laughing at my pointless panic attack.  
"Oh, okay" I said, still slightly nervous.

He set me down in the water and I wasn't happy for that for two reasons: 1, the water wasn't warm, and 2, I wanted to still be in his arms. I got really cold standing there in the water as we were talking. He noticed me shivering and said,  
"I'm sorry, I didn't know you were cold" he said, looking angry at himself.  
"No, I'm fine." I lied, "I shiver no matter what the water feels like!" I don't know why I lied to him, but I just felt weird so I did what I usually do in awkward situations. I could tell he didn't buy it though because he lifted one eyebrow and grinned, grabbed my arms and pulled me close to him anyway. I never thought I would be in the ocean standing with my arms around my shirtless best friend Austin at nighttime.

We had been standing there talking for so long that the sunset was gone and the moon had taken its place. I found myself shivering again and Austin wasn't going to let me get cold this time. He picked me up and I was all the way out of the water and carried me on his chest like a child. It was so much warmer out of the water and especially in Austin's arms again. I found the spot where I can hear his heartbeat and rested my head there. But something was different. His heartbeat wasn't slow and calming as usual. It was beating hard and fast. I looked up at him to see if he was okay. He looked at me and smiled.  
"Are you okay?" I asked.  
"Yeah, never better. Why?" He questioned.  
"Um, your heartbeat is faster than usual." I said kinda embarrassed. He laughed quietly before saying,  
"That's because I'm with you Ally" shyly.  
I got really embarrassed for no reason but I said,  
"You're always with me though,"  
"Yeah, but this is what I've been waiting for. This is the moment I've planned this whole night around. I was kinda nervous cause I didn't want to screw it up." He admitted.  
I felt so happy that this was his plan all along. I was blushing so much I thought my face would melt off but it didn't matter because he couldn't see that.

"I love you Ally. I really truly mean that. I never want to be with any other girl except you. I've said that to you before but I didn't know if you knew how much it was supposed to mean." said Austin.  
"I love you too Austin. I always have. You are my best friend but I've always known that we were more than that. And I know that tonight more than ever." I said.  
He leaned in to kiss me and I definitely didn't hold back. Our lips connected and it was the most magical thing in the world. I had one arm around his neck but the other was still on his chest and I felt his heartbeat nearly beat out of his chest. Mine was about to also. When we stopped kissing, he just looked down at me and smiled and we both started laughing because we both just experienced the best moment of our lives.

I was no longer shivering. There was enough heat from that moment to last me forever. We made our way back to the blanket up on the beach. We sat there the same way we did on the practice date for Kira. He leaned in close and put his arm around me and held one of my hands while I nestled into his body. Eventually we laid down and looked at the stars. I fell asleep while he was still holding his arm around me. I was unaware that I had rolled my head over onto his chest listening to the steady drum of his heartbeat again. It was the most comforting sound I knew. His skin was much warmer now on the beach encircling me in warmth. I fell into a deep sleep dreaming of my perfect life with Austin.

*all the way back to Austin's POV*

Ally finally made her way up the hill. We greeted each other and I could tell she was anxious to find out what I had planned. I told her that we were going to have a picnic in the most beautiful part of the park that nobody ever goes to. She was so excited. I knew she would be, she has told me before that she thinks picnics are really romantic.

When we got to our spot next to the pond, I told her to take what she wants out of the basket. She was overwhelmed with all her favorite goodies that I stocked up on in the basket. We ate and talked for endless hours until finally we were too full to eat anymore. She thanked me for the amazing meal. I told her it wasn't over yet and it was time to have fun and grabbed her hand and took her down a secret path that I found up here when I was planning the perfect date with her. I blew up the beach ball that I brought and asked if she was any good at volleyball. She was unsure but before she decided to quit, I tossed the ball at her and she hit it back perfectly.

Before long we had a nice little rally back and forth going on. Then Ally hit it harder than I expected she would and it smacked me in the stomach. I decided to play it funny and did a whole over dramatic scene which involved me falling in the sand and fake complaining but I was laughing the whole time. I noticed she was laughing too. I grabbed her hand and pulled her down in the sand with me.

We kept on laughing and we finally calmed down and I looked at her. She looked at me too. I wanted to kiss her now, but I decided it would be a better idea to save up all the romance until the end. So I jumped up and kicked my shoes off and pulled my shirt off. I noticed Ally looking at me and even though the sun was setting it didn't hide the blush on her face. The thought of her feeling like that while I was taking my shirt off made me blush too. I fought off my impulses to kiss her and ran into the ocean. When I came up for air I noticed she had taken off her first shirt leaving her with a tank top. Good, I thought, now I can bring her into the water.

I went up to the shore and picked her up cradle style and she grabbed onto me really tight which I didn't mind at all and I carried her out into the ocean. She kept screaming that she was afraid of waves. So after we got past the breaking point of the waves I told her everything was fine and I wouldn't let anything happen to her. I put her down in the water and not too long after that she was shivering. I'm such an idiot! I brought her out here when she didn't even want to be in it in the first place! I apologized for it being cold but she just gave me some lame excuse so I stood closer to her anyway.

I noticed that the moon had replaced the sun and the ocean was lit up by the moonlight. Perfect. Except Ally was shivering again. So this time, I picked her up out of the water completely and cradled her against my chest. All of a sudden I got really nervous. Maybe I was taking this too far, I don't even know how she feels about this. But the way she curled up against my chest reassured me that everything would be fine. She looked up at me and asked if I was okay. I told her I was and asked why she was concerned. She nervously said that my heartbeat was faster than usual. I was glad it was dark so she couldn't see me blush. It made me blush even more to know that she has always paid attention to my heartbeat. I have her a very truthful answer. I said,  
"It's because I'm with you Ally"  
She didn't understand because I was always with her. But I confessed to her that this was the moment I planned the night around. And I didn't want to mess it up.

This was the moment that I told her how much I loved her and I made sure she understood me this time. My heart started beating faster when she admitted to me that she has always loved me too. Finally I couldn't hold back anymore. I had to kiss her. And when I did my heart shot off like a rocket. This was our first real kiss. The last one was when we were both sad. It was more of an 'I'm gonna miss you type of kiss', this kiss was an 'I love you' type of kiss. We had to stop kissing cause we were out if breath. When we stopped we both just smiled at each other and started laughing. I don't know why but it was the best laughter in the world.

We went back up to the beach to sit on the blanket. I didn't bother putting my shirt back on because I don't think Ally wanted me to. I sat and put my arm around her the same way we did on the practice date. She curled up into me the same way too. Eventually we got tired and laid down to look at the stars. She fell asleep on me again (which will never get old)  
And while she was sleeping she rolled over on my chest. According to what she said earlier, I think she was trying to listen to my heart. I didn't mind at all.


End file.
